Tales that are True, Heartbreaking, and Tender
Aside from my tendency to avoid romance novels (the men are too perfect and the women too thin and beautiful for my window on reality), I still enjoy hearing a good love story. True love stories. About real people. Love that survives hardship and even loss. Here are a few love stories. Some have happy endings; some are heartbreaking. Most true love stories have elements of both.
Four Score and Almost Four
As of November 2025, Lyle Gittens (age 108) and his bride, Eleanor (age 107), have held the record for the longest marriage. They were married on June 4, 1942, creating one of the most enduring love stories in modern times. The couple met when Eleanor attended a basketball game at Clark Atlanta University to cheer on the team. Eleanor doesn’t remember much about the game, but she remembers a player named Lyle.
The couple knew they belonged together and made wedding plans despite the looming threat of war. A week after their engagement, Lyle was drafted. They married during Lyle’s three-day pass from military training. Eleanor wondered if she would ever see her new husband again.
Lyle served in Italy with the Army’s 92nd Infantry Division while Eleanor worked in payroll and as an elevator operator. When Lyle returned from military service, the couple settled in New York City and raised three children. Eleanor earned her doctorate in Urban Education at age 69.
Lyle and Eleanor currently live in Florida, near their daughter. At last report, they were celebrating 83 years of marriage. (By the way, Eleanor is still posting on her Facebook page.)
I'll Give You a Castle
George C. Boldt was born in 1851 in Pomerania, Prussia. He came to the U.S. at age 13 and worked as a kitchen worker before becoming one of the most successful hotel proprietors in American history, owning New York City’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
George, his wife Louise, and their children spent delightful summer days on Hart Island in the middle of the Thousand Island region. Boldt bought the island and worked to reshape it into a heart, renaming it Heart Island.
In 1900, Boldt hired 300 construction workers, artisans, and craftsmen to build a Rhineland-style hilltop castle with 120 rooms, a drawbridge, a yacht house, Italian gardens, tunnels, and a tower. The castle was to be a gift for his wife and a way to show his love for her and the children. George had hoped to finish his treasure by June 14, 1904, the day of their 27th wedding anniversary.
But Louise died on January 7, 1904, at age 42, possibly of tuberculosis. Her husband was heartbroken. He abandoned the castle and never returned to Heart Island.
The castle stood empty and vulnerable to vandalism until 1977, when the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority acquired the property and remodeled it. Today, it is open to tourists (and one of my favorite castles within driving distance). You can visit Boldt Castle and the Yacht House for under $20 per adult.
Forbidden Love
Elizabeth Barrett was a 38-year-old, unmarried, world-famous poet. Barrett’s father, a wealthy owner of Jamaican sugar plantations, refused to allow any of his twelve children to marry. To compound Elizabeth’s struggles, she suffered from an unknown health condition that caused malaise, breathing problems, and painful spasms. She was confined to her room.
Struggling poet and playwright Robert Browning was enthralled by Elizabeth’s poems. He wrote her a letter praising her work, saying, “I love your verses with all my heart, dear Miss Barrett.” He described her work as "fresh, strange music, the affluent language, the exquisite pathos, and true new brave thought.” He Browning wanted to meet the lady poet.
Elizabeth and Robert first met in her rooms on May 20, 1845, and began a secret courtship, exchanging over 500 letters. They were married privately in 1846 and moved to Italy, where Elizabeth’s health improved. She eventually gave birth to a son. She died in 1861 in her husband’s arms, (in his words) “smilingly, happily, and with a face like a girl’s. Her last word was ‘Beautiful.’”
Love stories produce the most glorious treasures. Elizabeth Barrett Browning gave us these words:
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
AND
If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love's sake only.
We Kind of Made a Deal
In 1980, Tonight Show host and comedian Jay Leno married Mavis Nicholson. They have been married for 46 years.
When Mavis was diagnosed with advanced dementia in 2024, Leno gained conservatorship of his wife’s estate. Some of his associates and friends were shocked by Leno’s faithful care of his wife and even suggested he get a girlfriend.
According to a Fox News article by Stephanie Giang-Paunon, Leno said, "You’re just doing the right thing because you’re supposed to. Right? That’s kind of — that used to be the norm, and then when you strayed, that was the out-of-whack part. Now the out-of-whack part is fairly common, and staying and doing what you’re supposed to do is stunning to people. Well, we kind of made a deal, you know." Leno says he enjoys his wife’s company and caring for her needs. This man understands the basis of true love stories - love through the good and the most challenging.
Leno looks for the humor in everyday life. One day, Leno took Mavis to a mall because she was down. He wanted to do something she would enjoy. He asked her if she would like to buy shoes. Mavis showed interest in a pair of bright blue sneakers. He encouraged her to buy a second pair. When the couple reached the checkout line, Leno found that one pair cost $24; the other pair cost over $800. They were designer sneakers. Leno laughed and told Mavis she looked great.
Leno says he promised to stand by his wife decades ago, and he continues to do so today.
Sources Used
admin. “A Short History of Boldt Castle in the Thousand Islands.” Usboattours.com, November 17, 2019. https://www.usboattours.com/a-short-history-of-boldt-castle-in-the-thousand-islands/.
Fhard555. Boldt Castle, Heart Island, Thousand Islands, New York. July 12, 2012. Photo. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Boldt_Castle,_Heart_Island,_Thousand_Islands,_New_York.jpg#Licensing.
Giang-Paunon, Stephanie. “Jay Leno Rejects Hollywood Pressure to ‘Get a Girlfriend’ and Stays Devoted to Wife with Dementia.” Foxnews.com, January 15, 2026. https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/jay-leno-rejects-hollywood-pressure-get-girlfriend-he-stays-devoted-wife-dementia.
———. “Jay Leno Tries to ‘Find the Humor’ during Wife’s Dementia Battle.” Fox News, January 31, 2025. https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/jay-leno-find-humor-wifes-dementia-battle.
Henry, Carma. “ELENAOR & LYLE: A Love Story.” The Westside Gazette, February 24, 2022. https://thewestsidegazette.com/elenaor-lyle-a-love-story/.
HISTORY.com Editors. “Great Romances in History - Love, Marriage, Truman | HISTORY.” HISTORY, December 22, 2009. https://www.history.com/articles/great-romances-in-history.
Newman, Vicki. “Oldest Married Couple Ever Share Their Sweet Love Story 83 Years after Saying ‘I Do.’” Guinness World Records, November 5, 2025. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2025/11/oldest-married-couple-ever-share-their-sweet-love-story-83-years-after-saying-i-do.
Stone, Marjorie. “Elizabeth Barrett Browning.” Victorian Poetry 44, no. 3 (2006): 322–31. https://doi.org/10.1353/vp.2006.0041.
Wikipedia Contributors. “George Boldt.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, January 19, 2026.
www.boldtcastle.com. “History — Official Boldt Castle Website – Alexandria Bay NY in the Heart of the 1000 Islands,” n.d. https://www.boldtcastle.com/visitorinfo/about.
1 Comments
Enjoyed these stories. Interested in checking out some of the others. Thank you Dec.